Bartz followed closely after the ninja cat just like everybody else, Boko's speed is very fast too. (Not to mention some ruined flowerbeds he cringed for Boko not noticing he stepped on it) Everybody seems to have cornered the cat to the wall. Bartz smirked, telling Boko to slow down. The chocobo seemed to understand it and slowed down. Bartz watched the thief throw something cyndrical and lobbed it to the wall. It made Bartz remember that exploding sphere that Laguna used to lob at manikins. Smoke started spewing out of the cyndrical thing, covering the area. The smoke was thick and you cannot see the wall from far.

Boko halted into a stop, his claws leaving a mark on the pavement. If Bartz and Boko still approached head on they could've rammed the wall with a broken skull. Not to mention Boko only jumps 10 feet or so. The momentum was slow enough to not make Frisk and Bartz fly out of Boko's back. Bartz looked back and saw the claw marks Boko made on the ground. Bartz nudged Frisk then asked: "Uh, Frisk? You alright there kid?" His tone was a mix of worry and guilt. Shouldn't have made the kid ride on Boko. The wind is just so good he nearly forgot there was a kid behind him.

Bartz watched the cat thief just jump out of something tall he didn't see and snatches the armor out of Naija, which surprised him. How can the cat snatch an armor so fast in midair? That was a professional thief that can put Zidane into shame. He should do something! That lady was falling fast! "We got to help her! Kid, you got some powers like you can phase through walls? Flight? Teleportation?" Bartz sounded demaning and desperate to help.

Frisk gripped onto the back of Bartz's shirt as he got Boko started on chasing the thief. They managed to lean to the side a bit so they could see what was in front of the chocobo. However, that didn't last, as Bartz had place a hand on their head. It was rough like Undyne's grip, but it was definitely firm enough to make sure that Frisk didn't fall off. Frisk soon felt the chocobo come to a stop and they asked Bartz "What's happened?"

They felt Bartz's nudge and they peeked over again to see that they were facing a wall, and a lot of smoke. After hearing Bartz's question, they started racking through their mind. They really wished they could use blue magic on Boko and get them over the wall, like Sans and Papyrus. Wait, Sans could! ...But he may be lazing about somewhere, and might not feel like capturing a thief (sounds legit). Oh! There was the jetpack function on their cell phone! How could Frisk forget?! They pulled out the cell phone and tried to activate it, but it didn't work. They were going to have to talk to Alphys about that.

They answered Bartz, "I don't, but I have a friend who might! For now, we'll need to go around the wall and fast! Try that way! I'll call my friend and see if he can help!" As Frisk spoke, they pointed towards an exit they could see. After pointing they gripped onto the back of Bartz's shirt again with one hand and started calling Sans with their cell phone. They heard the dial tone and hoped for Sans to pick up.

The posh gentleman spoke in a scholarly dialect that was slightly difficult to follow, but the point was not lost on the duo: Mario’s spiritual (and material) remains were stolen.

“Robbing someone’s grave at their own funeral?” Banjo bore a thoughtful look with his hand to his chin as he pondered the curious mishap.

“And think people think I’m disrespectful,” Kazooie remarked, shaking her head.

“You’d think they would at least wait until everyone was gone… or just not do it at all,” Banjo added, placing his fists against his hips and following Kazooie’s gesture. The man complimented them on their demonstrably retained musical ability as he offered them a formal greeting. “Slayer”, he introduced himself as. An oddly gritty name for such a well-mannered individual. Surely, it was just a nickname by which he prefered to be called, but it begged to question as to its origin. Perhaps, it suggested that there was more to him than his appearances and nature betrayed. No matter. A reciprocal salutation was in order.

“Oh. Um… thanks!” Banjo’s voice rose half an octave in delight at the flattering comment. He firmly shook Slayer’s hand and returned the formality in kind. “I’m Banjo, and this here’s my pal, Kazooie,” he followed, motioning to his avian partner. “I don’t mean to change the subject back so quickly, but are you sure they don’t need help? It sounds pretty serious.”

---

Before anyone could respond to his broadcast, Fox instinctively leaped aside when the culprit tossed a suspect device in his direction. It wasn’t an explosive meant for the wall or him as he had anticipated, but rather, it was merely a smokescreen for them to cover their escape. He didn’t notice that the spherical plunderer had passed him and cleared the wall until Naija flew overhead after it.

“He’s over the wall, heading into the city,” he dictated urgently over comms in an attempt to relay the information to whoever could hear him.

The pilot bounded from the wall to the nearest rooftop and resumed chase. He kept altitude at the cat burglar's left so they wouldn’t lose it in case it tried to turn. Some way down the streets, it went right instead, making its way up to the rooftops opposite. While it wasn’t moving forward, Fox leapt in its general direction and dashed through the air to get closer behind it. He drifted at the end of his dash and landed into a roll, taking off as he got back on his feet. He felt foolish for bothering to close that distance only for it to be made again when the thief jumped back the other way, stripping off Naija’s wings as it did. This would make the second time that pair of wings in particular was stolen. Fox sharply pivoted mid-run to intercept the falling siren, jumping from the ledge and twisting to face upward, ready to catch her. Time seemed to dilate with the influx of activity from all sides. Behind the thief, the lumas appeared to be the second fastest objects in motion, with an angrily determined Luigi being the third. Seeing the star children soar in above him to secure the hapless sea nymph, Fox returned his focus to the fleeing graverobber.

Fox’s perception returned to normal as soon as he dashed toward the last direction he remembered the round feline heading in, kicking off of a wall upon contact. Three more wall jumps later, he found himself back on an empty rooftop. Looking around, he failed to spot the perpetrator anywhere. It appeared that he had lost them, for which he was almost ready to curse himself until he took a closer look at a relatively quiet, unoccupied street corner. He spotted a pair of doors to a restaurant swinging closed, looking as if they were entered abruptly. Strange that such a place wouldn’t be busy at midday. Wasting no more time, Fox tumbled over the ledge, slid down the wall on his feet, and pushed off, turning in mid-air to land facing the inexplicably vacant establishment before charging in.

The doors violently flew open as Fox suddenly burst through them with blaster in hand, quickly clearing both corners upon entry. As he made his way further in, he was soon met with the sound of a roaring belch and the sight of its hideous source at the other end of a long row of tables, to which he quickly raised his weapon. Wario. Of course! That would explain why the place wasn’t busy; all of the food was gone he must have rented it out. He listened in aggravation as the glutinous doppleganger teased at the distinct likelihood of knowing the whereabouts of Mario's remains, the profound certainty of it being all too obvious.

“We all know you know damn well where they are,” Fox declared, irritation clear in his voice. “What’s say you make this easier for yourself and everyone else and just give them back... quietly?” He straightened his aim a little more as he finished his preemptive bargain. His patience was wearing gradually thin with these shenanigans, and it wasn’t helped by Wario’s counterproposal to invite him and Waluigi into their ranks. Fox harbored a near equal disdain for the wretched slob and his sniveling younger brother; Luigi, at least, didn’t make a point of hiding in his older brother’s shadow. He came to dislike Wario even more than he already did after learning of his involvement in the Subspace Incident, a crime of which he seemed to have been miraculously acquitted, against the better judgement of all. Hence, he’s still around to cause more problems.

Fox was as ready as ever to fight the two of them, and with a bereaved younger brother out for blood at his side, he was sure he had all the backup he would need… and then some. Unfortunately, the heroes wouldn’t have it so easily. The villainous duo came prepared, threatening to detonate the block if they moved on them. Fox’s eye’s narrowed sharply with intent in response while remaining trained on the two.

“I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but you’re a little late on ‘saving’ anyone,” he thought to himself, knowing full well that Mario’s rotund rival benefited more from his death than anything, and thus had no genuine investment his or anyone else’s survival, which would explain the oh so convenient timing of his scheme. His eyes further narrowed with ire at the realization. “Bastard! You’re obviously not here to help. What are you really after?”

A scene most disgraceful took place when both seats capsized under the bloated frame of the overfed crook, who was then unable to even stand back up on his own. The duressed waiter, who looked half ready to quit his job in a panic, reluctantly rushed to Waluigi’s assistance to help his older brother up. Fox took this opportunity to contact the others while those three were preoccupied. With one hand still aiming at them, and the other on his headset, he uttered the information to as many other squadmates as he could.

“Is anyone else getting this? It’s the Wario Brothers. They’re holed up in Mama’s, threatening to blow the block if their demands aren’t met. Send backup. Do not engage.”

After he finished broadcasting his update to the others, Fox placed his free hand back on his blaster just in time to witness the ravenous pig of a man proudly glut himself on an impossibly oversized submarine sandwich with practically no visible effort. The vile gorger held his loaded gut as he proclaimed his added threat of nuking the city with his most vulgar technique, one that the vulpine was tertiarily familiar with after having seen it before. Fox hissed through gritted teeth in frustration at the very mention of it. There was at least some chance that he could have called his bluff on the last threat, but this he knew Wario was serious about. History, experience, instinct, and mere common sense held that Wario couldn’t be trusted. Be that as it may, it was clear that he wasn’t exactly counting on their trust. They couldn’t afford to provoke or outright deny him in their position, but the least they could do was stall him until reinforcements and a better negotiator than himself arrived. With almost surprising restraint, given prior circumstances, Luigi spoke first, questioning the extent of their actions and motives for taking them. Fox followed, seconding his valid inquiry.

“He’s right. Why go through all the trouble? I’m sure you could have just asked, if you were really so eager. Now all you’ve done is make more work for yourself, and that’s if they do accept you.” He firmly adjusted his aim once more before tacking on a certain critical detail that he felt inclined to remind him of. Fox retained his stern demeanor as he spoke. “Don’t think that we’ve all forgotten what you’ve done.”

---

The Lumas raised a pointy salute to Naija when she thanked them and the three launched back into the sky to go tracking the cat thief. Cloud watched the Lumas take off again and his attention shifted over to the fish girl who proved to be just as agile on land as one would expect in the water. The ex-SOLDIER straightened his bike and was about to take off after the flying stars when the girl hopped back down and asked him for a ride.

“Get on,” Cloud directed. “And hold on tight.”

Once Naija was on, Cloud raised his booted feet and darted around the building to his right. He leaned right, dropping a boot onto the pavement and swerved his motorcycle into a sharp right down an alley. The Lumas were able to find the restaurant their magic last detected the cat thief before he disappeared. They hovered over the restaurant, high enough for any heroes to see them and rotating in a circle like a fancy billboard. Cloud pulled up right outside the restaurant and set the stand for his bike. Already from what he could hear outside, the situation well…it sounded ridiculous.

Cloud would walk with Naija inside if she chose to do so and stand behind Luigi and Fox. His blonde brows rose in an expression of surprise and his nose wrinkled in disgust at the sight of Wario. He had to resist walking out. Whatever the troublemaker was up to was usually stupid and a waste of time. Had he not embarrassed himself enough in the Smash Arena? Luigi and Fox seemed to ask the questions they all wanted to know. Now all they needed were answers.

Wario arched a brow at Luigi’s confused and stupid question. He wasn’t too surprised about it seeing as the Mario brothers were dumber than him. “Hired? What do you take me for? I didn’t hire anyone.” He then puffed out his chest and grinned proudly. “I sold Mario’s remains to King DD, thus this nice spread! What DD doesn’t know is that I’m about to join the heroes to get the dead chump’s remains back. It’s a win-win deal for me. Free money and glory!”

Waluigi nodded. “Ingenious, wah!”

As Fox insisted on accusing Wario of being a thief, the villain rolled his eyes. “It was probably King DD who hired the cat burglar. Ha! Cat burglar!”

Mama darted from the kitchen again with a large bowl of spaghetti. The noodles were stacked into a spiraling tower covered in spaghetti sauce with meatballs mixed in. Wario clapped his hands together and rubbed them greedily before he requested, “Bring the cheese will ya?”

“Coming up!” Mama replied before she raced back into the kitchen.

Wario grabbed a fork and slipped a few ropes of noodles into his mouth and started inhaling the endless locks of carbs. He slurped loud and obnoxiously, shrinking the mountain of noodles down to half its size before he paused to take a breath. He then narrowed his eyes nonchalantly at the gaggle of heroes who were starting to gather.

Don't think that we've all forgotten what you've done.

“Look here fox-brain, Mario’s my greatest rival. I wouldn’t be Wario without Mario,” Wario explained and then smirked when he gazed at Luigi. “Besides, it seems to me you guys need all the help you can get seein’ his own brother was the one who I heard was in charge of the mission that got him killed. And everyone says I’m evil, huh. The Mushroom Kingdom’s gonna be needin’ a new hero. Seein’ as I’ve played the hero game a few times, I don’t mind wearing the red hat and blue suspenders for a while.”

Mama returned with some parmesan cheese and shook it over the noodles. Wario didn’t say “when” until there was a mountain of shredded cheese on top. He resumed inhaling the noodles until the lost lock disappeared behind his lips and then picked up the bowl to dump the pile of meatballs into his mouth. Munching away with swollen cheeks and a mouth smeared in red sauce, he handed the empty spaghetti bowl back to Mama and grinned.

“Just give it up! I am the eatin’ champ!” Wario declared.

The Koopa waiter begged. “Mama, just give him what he wants! They won. If he gets any fatter, he won’t be able to leave!”

Wario slammed a fist upon the table and glared at the Koopa. “Who are you callin’ fat? I think I’ll have the turtle soup next!”

The Koopa’s eyes bulged in fright and he fled inside his green shell.

Mama frowned in determination as she thoughtfully stared down at the empty spaghetti bowl in her hands. A light bulb flashed above her head and she raised her head confidently.

“I know what I’m going to do!” she exclaimed and raced off into the kitchen.

Wario wiped his mouth with his bib, tugged it from his neck, and tossed it onto the table before him. “We won this contest. She’s just bein’ a sore loser.”

James chased the cat with intent to intercept at a given notice, one hand resting near the Imago Loop when he took a change of wall in his pursuit to maintain a line of sight. The sudden tossing of the bomb had the Guardian throwing up an arm to catch any shrapnel that cleared the gap, only for Charger to indicate the thief had thrown a smoke bomb. He had intended to respond to the anthropomorphic Fox when the voice crackled through into his ears, but the need to maintain pursuit of the thief kept him quiet. Leaping over the smoke and wall with the use of his double jump, the Nightstalker landed at a roll before coming back to his feet and continuing his sprint.

The chase, as it were, eventually lead out of the castle grounds and into the city proper, where the cat thief used the surrounding terrain to attempt to shake his pursuers, though it seemed to be less than effective for those of the more agile breed such as himself and Fox. Though while the ace pilot opted to try and gain ground on the cat, James moved to set up to maintain a line of sight. A building across from where the cat landed after stealing Naija's armor, provided James with the positioning he needed after he made sure the fishgirl was not going to go ka-splat and another funeral held.

Approaching the edge, he pulled the Stillpiercer free of it's place on his back and kneeled down, using the slightly raised lip to brace against as he scoped up. The cat thief wasn't hard to see now that he had pretty much shaken pursuit to his knowledge and the Nightstalker maintained his height advantage after the cat had left the roofs. He waited until the thief had disappeared into Mama's before setting up again, scoping up and grimacing at the sight of the overweight man gorging himself inside. "Oh that's nasty as hell. And I thought the Hive was as ugly as it got." For once, his Ghost companion agreed without a big long lead up to why.

"That is indeed disgusting. How is it people like that exist when-" James immediately tuned out his companion as he started in on one of his rants and focused back at the task at hand as the other chasers arrived, or at least those who weren't on vehicles. While he admittedly couldn't hear any of what was being said, he could make a guess as to what was being conversed about by reading the fat bastard's lips like he did with Zavala when he was tired of the Titan's incessant nagging and turned on music to silence his voice. After a couple of minutes, Fox's voice came through a second time.

“Is anyone else getting this? It’s the Wario Brothers. They’re holed up in Mama’s, threatening to blow the block if their demands aren’t met. Send backup. Do not engage.” Smiling behind his helmet, he opened a response channel to the pilot.

"This is James Varrock. I'm set up on a rooftop across from the restaurant with my sniper rifle. So far as I can tell, I've not been seen. Give the word and I can put a hole in the fat bastard's gullet and arm before he realizes what's happened."

In reply to Banjo and Kazooie's initial comments, Slayer offered a curt nod. ”My thoughts exactly. My guess is some sort of ulterior motive, perhaps some kind of greater ploy. Despite my limited experience with souls or anything of the like, my intuition tells me that the essence of a man as strong and revered as Mario could be used for all sorts of nefarious purposes. To commit such an act in such a crowded public space screams of wanton stupidity or purposeful, fearless resolve.” The bear's paw, when shaken, was about as hairy and rough as the vampire might gave guessed, but far more articulate than any ordinary animal's mitt. So these two are named after their instruments...? Ah, no, how silly of me. They most likely chose those instruments in celebration of their names. A catchy combination for sure, and though their specialties would be totally unsuited to, say, an orchestra, their work possesses a charm that surely must make them popular among the casual, middle-aged crowd.

His train of thought returned to the felon, causing him to cast another glance in the direction of the Tac's departure. By now, he couldn't even catch a glimpse of any of the pursuing heroes. Idly he wondered if he should have gone after all; if something important happened, he did not want to miss it, and his guidance might help the more impulsive or naïve heroes out of a potential sticky situation. Still, Slayer didn't second-guess himself, and after a few seconds placed his focus back on his new acquaintances. ”If you feel that all the do-gooders who've already sprinted off aren't up to the task, please do not hesitate to follow them on my account. I just felt as though my pace would be a bit too composed to personally join the hunt.” Now that he looked around the castle grounds, the place seemed rather barren. Surely, given the sheer volume of heroes in pursuit of the Tac, they could accomplish whatever they needed to without Slayer needing to lift a finger. That said, though he enjoyed the bear-and-birds' company, he didn't want to wait around this area much longer.

Putting a hand to his chin, he searched the vaults of his memory for a place within Tetris Castle he'd rather be. After a few moments it hit him—a smidgen of information present on a quick guide to the angular palace's floors. ”Ah, I almost forgot. I had wanted to visit the spa after yesterday's mission, but since then with this sorrowful affair I've only managed to accumulate more stress. Surely it would not be above my station to indulge in the comforts provided by this place. Otherwise, what good are they? Hmhm!” He span around, coattails flying, and took a step toward the castle entrance before pausing. Then, the gentleman glanced sideways at Banjo and Kazooie. ”Of course, it would be rude of me not to invite you along as a reward for your performance. A warm, steamy sauna is the height of lavishness no matter one's species.” He took a puff of his pipe as he waited for a response, his face bearing a genial expression.

Bartz told the chocobo to find a way around, which Boko did without hesitation, he began to jog to their right, to where Frisk pointed, to a street that he hoped that will bring them around the wall.

"What's that thing on your hand?" Bartz asked as he saw Frisk dialing up. Waiting for a reply, he steered Boko to the street and entered it, only to find the chasers might've gotten first and they'll come last. Boko started running to try and catch up. Bartz steered Boko around to signal him where to go. Eventually, they'll find where the others are.



A slamming of a door alerted Sans awake, Papyrus have entered his bedroom, a pink apron that says 'THE GREAT CHEF PAPYRUS' was wrapped around his neck and waist and a chef hat on his skull. His scarf was still there, though. There was an uncooked pasta in a box grasped in his right gloved hand and a cellphone in his other hand. Papyrus looked furious.

"SANS! YOU LEFT YOUR PHONE LYING AROUND THE FLOOR BESIDE THE COUCH!!" Papyrus yelled in dismay, the phone is ringing. Wonder who would that be? Bet was on Frisk. Or Toriel for Frisk. Sans eyes widened in realization that he was supposed to be with Frisk in Pixel City! Sans sat on his bed, his usual goofy grin still in place.

"huh? thanks paps. didn't know it was floored." He snorted, his grin wider. The kind-hearted tall skeleton gave his brother the phone after a long exagerated groan and exited the room with another banging of the door.

" and here I thought he was open to people. heh." Sans stood up with a deep chuckle. He looked at his phone and found out who the caller was, relief flooded his whole body as he saw it was Frisk. Then stiffened as he realized it was Toriel calling using Frisk's phone and found out he woke up late. He took his blue jacket and wore it on then answered the phone.

"hey kiddo."

“You mean you’re slow?” Kazooie, ignorant of the possible contrary, inquired doubtfully at Slayer’s expense when he excused himself from participation on account of his more controlled bearing.

“Of course not!” Banjo interjected with subtle elevation in his tone to scold her for her thoughtlessly direct speech. “I’m sure he’s just… diligent, is all.” Though, he would be correct in his assertion, he wasn’t actually sure of that himself. Still, the apology would probably register clear with the vampire, as well as the fact that this was simply part of their dynamic; that no real offense was intended to him. Moreover, the talk of pace reminded Banjo that they would face a similar issue. “By the way, can we still fly?”

“Afraid not,” she responded shaking her head. “Haven’t had to do it in so long that I must have lost it. Sorry, Banjo.” There was a discernible sense of mild disappointment in her voice at the end of her statement.

“It’s okay, Kazooie,” he reassured, casting a glance at the two riding what looked like a giant chicken as they left through the nearest exit. “*sigh* Guess I’ll be getting some needed exercise,” he said with a sigh (of course) as he took a second to stretch his arms. Their attention returned to Slayer as he spoke his intention of adjourning to the castle spa; a plan made all the more understandable by the fact that he was apparently part of the heroic mission that the others were on, to which Banjo silently nodded in concurrence. Go figure. He then politely offered for the bear and bird to join him in relaxation.

“As appealing as that sounds, we’ve got somewhere else we need to be,” said Kazooie, obviously referencing the effort to rescue Mario’s spirit and headwear. “This ‘hero’ stuff is kind of our business, too. Besides, we usually take our reward after the work’s done.”

“Kazooie’s right. We hate to turn you down for now, but we’re gonna go try to help them however we can first. Though, if you want, we can still take you up on that afterwards,” Banjo proposed, not wishing to wholly reject the favor. A moment more would be spared before Banjo and Kazooie’s departure to allow for Slayer to entertain the idea however he saw fit. Afterwards, they would take their leave, heading out the same way as the bird riders. Of course, a brisk jog would be the most Banjo could manage on his own, so they would have no hope of catching them at their current rate. Fortunately, there was a light feather trail the duo could follow to save time on painstakingly combing the city for the thief. A shame the feathers were a soft yellow instead of gold, making them functionally useless as pick-ups. Though, with their presumed reset, they were presently unlikely to be capable to performing the Wonderwing technique again, regardless. As they took their first steps out of the gardens and onto the Platform City streets, the two began to lightly converse on the matter at hand.

“So, you think there’s any chance he’s right; that they might already have this taken care of?” Kazooie wondered aloud to Banjo, curious as to whether or not they would get there to find their work done for them.

“I sure hope so. Otherwise, this is going to be a long day.”

---

Fox had asked himself what Wario’s true motive was, now wishing he hadn’t. The answer given couldn’t have been any more absurd. Was he hearing that right? All this fuss just so the already rich, overfed villain well within his means could have his grossly overindulgent meal paid for--something he could have done himself hundreds of times over? Was he really that greedy and selfish, or just that stupid? Of course, his sycophantic younger brother would beg to disagree, proclaiming brilliance in Wario’s asinine plot. It was made all the better by the fact that he inadvertently gave them a good idea of where to look next by disclosing King Dedede as his benefactor. Fox would be sure to hang on to this information for later into the negotiation, should they gain a more clear situational advantage.

On that note, the voice of James Varrock, a fellow squadmate whose name Fox was just hearing for the first time, came through to inform him that he was positioned to take out Wario on command. If only it was that simple. The situation was slightly more complicated than Fox could elaborate on without alerting the bloated offender. Once again, he was forced to wait for breaks in conversation coupled with momentary distractions to break radio silence, and even then, he could only barely afford to do so.

“Hold,” He ordered simply, speaking softly under the sound of Wario mainlining pasta for all of the second or two that it took him. As unsatisfactory as it was, the monosyllabic command would have to do, but it should suffice to let the nightstalker to know to hold his fire.

After finishing his mouthful, Wario began rambling on about how his past experience--allegedly as a “hero”--made him fit for Mario’s mantle, and he, too, blamed Luigi for the Mushroom Kingdom hero’s death. Word got out that far, did it? Of course the rivalrous copycat would think this a good excuse. He was not only without heart or shame, but arrogant too. He even went so far as to end his farcical appeal with proclaimed intent to don the proverbial “red cap”, as if to say that he was somehow entitled to.

“Easier done if you didn’t sell it,” Fox cut in sharply as the glutton resumed inhaling his entree, “along with the soul of the man who wore it. Did it ever occur to you that they weren’t yours to sell?!” Such wasn’t the conduct of a hero, so it made sense to Fox that Wario be called out and reprimanded for it. “For one making claims to heroism, you don’t seem to understand how it works. Desecration, theft, duplicity, extortion--against your demanded allies, no less. I’d say you’re not exactly off to a good start.” Fox acted to budge the would-be “hero” by taking jabs at his ego-founded logic as a segue into the only compromise he was willing to offer, if only because circumstances called for it.

“If you want to set a better example, stand down and surrender yourself to the Council. Let them decide what they want to do with you. They’re the ones you have to go through. I invite you to explain your ‘heroic intent’ to them,” he said almost derisively with an undertone of sarcasm accenting the statement. “I’m sure they’ll see to reason,” he ended similarly in a “who knows, maybe they will” sort of manner. The idea presented was that Wario could attempt to lend a character appeal, however superficial, through humbling submission to the powers that be. It was a prospect Fox had no real faith in, so he looked for Wario to take it as a challenge, if nothing else. In the best case, it gets him out of the way, but at the very least, it would abate their present predicament.

Anticipating whatever reinforcements were on their way to arrive shortly, Fox, keeping in mind the information given away earlier, expected that they may be able to bolster enough leverage through manpower to pressure Wario into backing down, should Fox’s gambit (or any and all other attempts at diplomacy) fail. This, however, was merely a second to last resort, with the actual use of force being the very last. Hopefully, the situation would simply dissolve on its own without it coming down to either. All the while, Fox’s aim would remain warily trained on Wario, not shifting so much as a centimeter out of his way in the absence of any immediate reason to.

Luigi had never wanted to kill someone more in his life then he did at this very moment in time. Wario and Waluigi had long been a thorn in not just his side, but Mario's and quite a large number of other people as well and this had gone way over the line. However, as deeply... deeply satisfying as it would have been to ram a lethal amount of electricity into the hat tub of lard's brain (and possibly risk bringing it back to life in the process) the threat to those within the city block could not be ignored for petty vengeance.

While he listened to what Fox had to say (and fully agreed with him on it as well), Luigi had dealt with Wario before; He wouldn't be swayed by such things as common sense and sanity... but an alternative did present itself. "Alright. I'll make a deal with the two of you."

Taking a deep breath, Luigi really hoped that those with him considered the words he was about to say very carefully. "I am fully prepared to go in front of the council and vouch for the two of you. As... maligned as you're methods might have been, I cannot argue that they were resourceful and effective for your goals. I will even go as far as to say that you joined in out of concern and a sense of right when we happened to pass you both by chance. However, there is a price to pay for my help in getting your respective feet in the door with the council... You have to help us get my brother's hat and soul back. Do we have a deal?"

Frisk answered Bartz as the dial tone rang, as though it was obvious, "It's my cell phone," Soon they heard Sans answer and Frisk was flooded with relief at the fact that Sans was not asleep...or was probably roused awake by the phone. They answered Sans, "Hey Sans! Remember how I told you about the funeral last night and how I was going? Well, I went, and some doo-doo head thief stole Mario's SOUL and hat! I'm helping chase after them now, but we may need your help," Now that they thought about the situation a little, they came to realize that the lights were probably Mario's SOUL, in a different form. They then added, remembering how Sans didn't feel like helping the royal guard in capturing them in the Underground, "If you don't feel like helping, then that's fine. But, Bartz and I are coming right up to Mama's Restaurant right now. I gotta go!"

They hung up on Sans right as the Chocobo reached Mama's Restaurant, and as soon as the chocobo had slowed down enough or stopped, Frisk immediately jumped off, and thanked Bartz "Thank you for the ride, Mr. Bartz!"

They then dashed into the restaurant, hoping that they weren't too late. Thankfully, they reached the inside. Although Frisk could only see the backs of the other heroes, they could hear what everyone was saying and what the people they were talking to sounded like. They had heard one of the voices blame Luigi for Mario's death, and the Fox making really good points. Frisk looked to Luigi in concern. It was never the sibling's fault for their brother's/sister's death! If the nightmares were any indication, Frisk knew that very well....

Frisk could tell that Luigi wanted to hurt the people in front of him, but was holding it back while he made a deal with the two. Frisk maneuvered past a couple of the heroes in order to get a clear look at the supposed 'allies', while staying hidden from their sights. ....Annnd Frisk immediately wished they hadn't. There was a huge fat man at the table, who was devouring a plate of spaghetti, and it was clear he had eaten a lot already. They couldn't help but think of laying off of Papyrus's spaghetti and Toriel's pie for a while after laying eyes on Wario. "Sorry Mom...Sorry Papyrus..."

After snapping out of that line of thought, they focused their closed eyed gaze on Wario and focused. They recalled their experience in the Underground, and how they checked on the monsters who picked a fight with them, along with their mother's lessons on the SOUL. With those in mind, Frisk focused...

"Let's have a Heart to Heart, shall we?" They thought to themselves

Frisk tried to be discreet as their SOUL appeared, glowing red, and the menu appeared. They chose ACT and CHECK and focused that on Wario. They were attempting to scan Wario, in hopes of learning something that could help the heroes. There could be something important that the action could pick up that the other heroes might not be able to see with just their eyes alone. You just never know for sure...

Frisk hoped that those bulging fat things above his stomach, and the food in front of him would prevent Wario from noticing his SOUL appearing for a brief moment...

---

Shantae walked over to the table with Steve, and listened as Taric introduced himself to her. She rubbed the back of her head at the mention of Risky Boots being her friend. As much as Shantae would like to be friends with her, especially since she helped fight against the Pirate Captain before. But it didn't seem likely since Risky was still up to her evil ways during the last time Shantae saw her. She looked to Jack once Taric asked him if he could help. She listened to Jack, before she answered Taric, Jack, and Steve, "It's nice to meet you. And thanks for letting me know," She then stopped and asked "Wait, you guys are summoned for the Mugen Virus situation as well? That's cool! I guess that means we'll be working together,"

”Thanks! I’m Naija by the way. Nice to meet you”

She hopped over and up behind Cloud on his bike. She dispelled energy form so as to not accidentally burn anything with her hands and then, after a brief information dump to the fourth wall about the importance of wearing helmets while riding bikers that came out of nowhere, was completely disassociated with the scene’s urgency, would never be mentioned again and was entirely out of character, withdrew the Valkyrie helmet from her inventory and put it on.

She held on tight as instructed and had way too much fun riding the mechanical mount with Cloud. If they weren't on the hunt of an inpatient grave robber then she would almost certainly have been whooping for joy during their tragically short journey to Mama’s.

When they arrived the helmet was removed and the two of them made their way inside to where Fox and Luigi were apparently confronting a grotesquely fat man and a super lanky man who both had attires oddly similar to those of Mario and Luigi. More brothers or perhaps cousins? Whoever they were they were, judging conversation between them and the heroes inside, a nasty pair who were apparently jumping on the “Mario’s death is Luigi’s fault” bandwagon with gusto and had also been the culprits for the thievery. As a result they did not get to leave Naija’s “hostiles to kill” list. She hadn't caught the threat about blowing up the building but if the other’s weren't engaging there was probably a good reason for it, so she held back for now. She decided to see if she could find another way inside, perhaps she could help the poor woman who was running around serving them or surround the Wario bros for when the heroes did attack.

Naija exited the building again as frisk entered, trying yo disguising their leaving as Frisk’s entrance (what was a child even doing here?), and went round the back of the restaurant searching for a side door. It was likely that a place like this had a staff door or rear kitchen entrance and Naija would use this to try and get inside. If it was locked that might cause a problem as Naija wasn’t used to locked doors that needed literal keys and so after failing to find a puzzle that opened the door she would knock to see if she could get a response. When she encountered mama she would ask:

”Hey there Miss… Mama? I’m Naija, I’m with they guys round the front. The good guys not the blob guy and his stick friend. Can I come in and help you? Either with cooking or with just putting the pressure on the thieves by having them surrounded?”

Character: Steve
Level: 1
Day/Time: Day Two; Noon
Location: Barrel Roll Pub
Tag: @Crosswire@DracoLunaris@Guardian Angel Haruki
Mention: NPCs

"Mugen virus?" Steve asked with a frown. "All I remember is I started walking, went past the edge of my map trying to find what else there was, but all I ended up finding was this place. By the time I got here, I was hungry and tired. Had to help out at the Inn to earn my night's stay and meals. All I have left now is 64 dirt blocks and 64 cobblestone blocks."

Looking around, he frowned. "I really need some wood and leather. At least then I could build my armor and weapons." Thinking about it for a second, he looked at his new friends. "I'm not guessing any of you know an easy place to get some?"

Taric wandered what kind of place Jack’s world was where getting into melee combat only risked being punched rather than say, being cleaved in twain or torn asunder. He considered bringing it up but all the possible grisly death they could encounter where not something you talked about while eating. Instead he simply nodded, showing that he agreed he would help keep the man clear of those types of dangers

While Jack was not overly confident in his ability to get them inside it seemed Shantae had also been sent for to handle the virus, hopefully she could gain help from the organizers of this call and he could go with them to see whether they would accept his assistance.

”I wasn’t summon either, however I will be attempting to join now that I have found out about this situation. If I may ask, in the interest of knowing the capabilities of those who we will be working with, where do you talents lay? Are you perhaps a mage or martial artist, or are your skills more medical in nature?”

He asked because unlike him with his mace and armor or Jack with his pistol and dog it was not immediately clear what her preferred method of combat was, if she even as a fighter.

As for their cuboid friends questions about wood and leather.

”You could always buy some, I would Imagine they have stores that sell practically everything from every world in platform city. Or at least the more common good from them anyway.”

At the very least the wood this bar was made out of had to come from somewhere, as did any cow related foods on the menus of the various restaurants.

Samus continued to run after the thief that stole Mario's remains. However, the little bugger was simply too fast for her to either get close to catch it and too agile for the bounty hunter to lock her cannon's targeting computer. Even as she tries manually shooting it with her pellets, she hits nothing but ground and wall. Once it vanished, she, Cloud, and Najia were back at square one. However, the lumas were able to pinpoint where the thief went and after offering them all a ride, they made it to its last known sighting...

Mama's Kitchen.

As soon as they landed, the blonde armored warrior walked alongside the two characters, along with Fox and Luigi who just opened the doors first. As they got in, chaos had already left its mark. In the middle of it all were the Wario Brothers, Wario and Waluigi, direct rivals of the Mario Brothers. Oh boy, she remembers these guys, especially the former. They were not fair fighters in the least, often did they rely on cunning trickery and even cheats to achieve their victory. While Waluigi wasn't officially in her Smash Tournaments, the Assist Trophies did allow him to participate for a hot minute or two, wielding his tennis racket as he attempts to stomp you into the ground (literally) and smack you with the racket. Overall, they were a nasty duo that must be stopped at all costs. Their blaming of Mario and Luigi didn't make their reputations any better.

Despite this, it seems as if Cloud, Fox and Luigi had this side covered already. But what if they had some escape plan ready from within the restaurant? It seemed slightly suspicious. Perhaps she could go through the kitchen and try to come up with a plan to halt their potential escape with the owner. But before she can come up with a plan, she hears the doors behind her open, with Najia running out and skidding the building, almost as if she was looking for another alternate entrance way. Looks like Samus wasn't the only one with the same idea. With that, she runs out as well, looking down to see a small child enter the room. What was her doing in here anyways?

Samus was lagging a little behind the amphibious character, but considered the fact that she was trying to find a staff door into the kitchen as well. That's what Samus would've done on her own. Eventually, she locates the door just as it closed shut. With slight hesitation the bounty hunter entered just as Najia was explaining herself to the owner Cooking Mama.

”...I’m with the guys round the front. The good guys not the blob guy and his stick friend. Can I come in and help you? Either with cooking or with just putting the pressure on the thieves by having them surrounded?”

As she enters the room, Samus stops as she gives a friendly salute to the owner.

"I'm with her." she bluntly states as she relaxes a bit, "What would you like us to do?"

Bartz nodded at Frisk's thanks and hopped down Boko's back and down to the stony sidewalk beside Mama's. "Boko, stay here." Bartz said before entering Mama's, then going outside again. He knew Boko would disobey Bartz and follow him. "Boko!" Bartz hissed and went back to Mama's. Bartz, for the last here to enter the Mama's, still doesn't know what's happening so he decided to wait and figure out the what's and why's. Bartz could smell food that he doesn't have tasted or smelled before, but he was sure it was food. Because the Wario brothers are eating it.

Bartz remembered his powers are still gone and what's left was his sword and dagger. He doesn't want to speak up and give a nasty remark to Wario, because he doesn't kniw him. So he bit back his thoughts.



Sans looked down at his phone and shrugged. Not asking who Bartz is or what Mama is. He felt like maybe he wouldn't help, after all, it seems like they got it covered. And Frisk is not there for Toriel to know he's still here. "welp." Sans gave a sigh and teleported to their Kitchen, where Papyrus is making spaghetti loudly with pots and pans crashing and banging. He trudged towards the fridge and took a bottle of ketchup, then started drinking it and walked towards their front door.

"bye paps. see you later." Sans said aloud and opened the door and went outside, closing the door behind him. Then he continously teleported until he reached the edge of Ebott Town that leads to Pixel City. It was a City, so it should have convenience stores with ketchup.

Lawman LV.1

---

“I think Steve said he was broke, Taric. But you’re right. Wood and leather aren’t exactly rare." Jack poured himself yet another glass of whiskey as he spoke and quickly knocked it back, this time desiring the mentally numbing sting of the alcohol. His eyes turned to Steve and couldn't help but grit his teeth as his nerves were grated. The square headed man seemed more lost and witless then most of the crackheads he'd had to put up with in Grant City. He'd assumed the man was simply out of his element, and hearing he'd more or less bungled his way into Platform City only emphasized that fact. Never the less it was frustrating to see how little initiative Steve seemed to have.

"I said this before, and I'll say it again if it'll help, go find an old couch. Chances are someone peed on it, or puked on it, or probably worse. But plenty of couches are made of wood and have exteriors made of leather, or at least some kind of clothe. Even in a city like this people are bound to throw away things they don't need. So just poke around in the back alleys or on curbs till you find what you want."



It wasn't pretty advice but when you were broke you didn't have a lot of options and the last thing he wanted to worry about was petty theft by a man with more sharp corners then a box of Legos.

Returning to his food Jack felt something touch his leg and looked down to see Shadow, snout covered in blood, nosing him.

"Grrrrgggg." Shadow whined.

"Relax boy, one bowl should be enough to tide you over. I have a feeling you'll get something else to sink your teeth into very soon..."

Taric's question about Shantae's capabilities drew his attention away from his dog. "I'll admit I'm curious to hear what you can do as well.

---

Resting a forearm on the table, Wario leaned against it, which caused the entire table to groan under his weight as he gave Fox a narrow-eyed look. The fox had tried to be a smart-ass. Wario simply returned, “They weren’t yours to keep. In fact, they were Mario’s things, and I don’t recall the red bastard ever writin’ a will. So to me that meant they were free game. Well…” He grinned as he started to twirl his mustache. “They weren’t free. They made me rich.”

Wario then leaned off the table and shrugged his shoulders carelessly at Fox’s accusations. “Eh, discrimination. So my personality’s different.”

“There isn’t anythin’ to negotiate. I don’t think you quite understand the situation. Seein’ as you’re nothin’ but a dumb animal, I’ll say it again. You guys either let me join or I’m blowin’ the block. I’ll help you get Mario’s things back, but only if you let me join your little hero club. You should be beggin’ me to join. This is a once and lifetime deal. The legendary Wario braves Dream Land to help save his nemesis Mario. The publicity’s gonna be big.”

Waluigi rose off of the table and rubbed his hands together greedily. “You’ll make even more money, wah!”

Alright. I’ll make a deal with the two of you.

Wario crossed his muscular arms before his moobs as he listened to Luigi. As soon as Luigi finished, Wario arched a brow. Nobody had been listening to him and it irritated him.

“For bein’ heroes…you guys aren’t the sharpest bulbs in the shed box.”

Waluigi gave Wario a wide-eyed, tight-lipped look as though he had wanted to say something…maybe correct him. The two brothers made eye-contact and Waluigi just looked away off to a corner of the ceiling.

“I’ve been sayin’ this. I’m not sayin’ it again. I don’t speak any other languages for you chumps to understand.”

“Chumps, wah,” Waluigi echoed with a grin.

As Frisk ran a CHECK on Wario, they would immediately notice an anomaly. Expecting a heart as it would be in the Undertale verse, within Wario was not a heart but a gold coin similar to the ones found throughout the Mario universe. As they would continue to watch, a tiny version of Wario went marching over to the gold coin and snatched it before holding it up and laughing in a chipmunk voice, “WA HA HA HA HAA~!”

Pocketing the coin, the little Wario brought his hands to the sides of his face and blew a raspberry at Frisk. Wario had been an anomaly because he was a greedy cheater at heart. Unlike Mario, Wario was immortal, and therefore, probably didn’t even have a real soul. Wario immediately suspected something odd was happening and glared over at Frisk.

“HEY!” he angrily roared, slapping his hands upon the table only to finally cause it to break. The Koopa’s shell tumbled into the middle as the table split down its center. Wario struck the floor again with another restaurant quaking thump, his big, hairy ass in the air as he flailed and kicked his arms, practically drowning in his own flab. Waluigi quickly ran over to push him onto his side as Wario rolled onto his back, gasping in relief. He looked like a bloated puffer fish.

“I almost died,” Wario muttered miserably—not like he could.

The doors behind the heroes were thrust open as the Army-green clad Guile barged into the restaurant. Grasping the leg of his shades, he removed them and his blue eyes swept over every hero and villain in the restaurant. He had received Fox’s call, and he hadn’t been the only one to arrive. With her skirts gripped in her hands, Rosalina marched in with a big scowl on her doe-like face. Her three Lumas floated into the restaurant behind her, matching her frown.

“Wario!” she angrily exclaimed.

Waluigi paused as he was trying to help Wario sit up. The two brothers peered wide-eyed over their shoulders at the light-blue Nintendo goddess that was marching over to them. Waluigi gasped and quickly released Wario to dart under one half of the broken table. The back of Wario’s head knocked against the floor as he flopped back onto his back.

“Hey! Coward!” he growled.

Rosalina stepped over to the fat man and peered down at him with a wrinkled nose of disgust. “You give back Mario’s remains right now!”

“I don’t-!”

The goddess suddenly imprisoned Wario in a tight bubble. The villain was completely sealed inside a snug sphere and floating off the ground. He looked like a limbless blob floating before her. Rosalina then kicked the bubble, sending it soaring like a ball into the restaurant wall. It ricocheted off to rebound in multiple directions smacking and slamming into the floor, ceiling, and walls before it struck the floor a final time to pop and send the villain rolling.

“Waaah!” Wario cried as he went rolling into a wall that surprisingly didn’t give out on collision. Plaster cracked about him as dust rose in a white plume about him, causing him to cough.

Rosalina didn’t seem finished as she marched toward him again, this time drawing her wand. Wario gazed at the woman in fear, raising his arms to hide his face. She was about to assault him with another one of her spells until Guile grabbed her hand that was clutching the wand and told her:

“Hold on a second.”

Rosalina scowled up at Guile and huffed. Guile released her hand and strode over to stand before Wario with his hands on his hips.

“I heard you had some demands. Allow me to represent The Council. We’re listening…”

Meanwhile, in the back kitchen, the little woman was standing on a wooden stool before a steaming pot. She held the lid in one hand and the spoon in her other. Whatever she was cooking hadn’t smelled as pleasant as her other dishes.

Hey there Miss…Mama?

Mama paused and peered over her shoulder to see a fish girl. For a second she thought that one of the fish had escaped the aquarium, but then she realized that obviously hadn’t been the case. She smiled as the fish girl introduced herself as Naija. She told her about how they weren’t related to her customers in the other room.

Can I come in and help you?

Mama beamed. “Of course you can!”

I’m with her. came the voice of another volunteer. What would you like us to do?

A purple tentacle reached out of the pot as two yellow eyes appeared, peeking from within the boiling broth. The creature she was cooking with its tubular mouth, appeared to be an Octo that startled Mama by spitting a rock against the wall. Mama quickly whirled around to slap the creature’s tentacle with her spoon and poke it back down into the pot. Closing the lid, she quickly flipped the clamps on it before she climbed down the stool. Compared to the heights of Naija and Samus, Mama was a 4’5” dwarf.

“I think I know what I’ve been doing wrong. I’ve been making delicious dishes. If I really want to make things difficult, then I need to cook something absolutely disgusting!” she explained. “We’re going to cook Octopus soup. Whatever ingredients you two want to add will be of your choosing! I appreciate your help!”

Mama dropped her fist into her palm and smirked in determination. “I’ll be surprised if my customer can swallow this one!”

The little woman thrust out her arms and waved them about her kitchen. “Feel free to use my kitchen! Just bring whatever you make or find over to the pot!”



Wario had explained his demands again for Guile. The street fighter closed his eyes, crossed his arms before his chest, and nodded.

“So let me get this straight…you sold Mario’s hat and soul to King Deedee for gold. King Deedee sent the cat burglar to take what he bought back to Dream Land. You have since been stuffing your face here at Mama’s, planning to set off a bomb that would level this entire block in the case we figured out it was you and refused to comply with your demands. And you want to join our hero organization to get Mario’s hat and soul back from King Deedee for the sake of glory…”

“And publicity, wah!” Waluigi added.

“And publicity. Did I understand everything right?” Guile asked, opening his eyes.

Wario who was rocking back and forth, posting his hands behind him and trying to push himself upwards huffed and puffed, “That’s right!”

Guile uncrossed his arms and nonchalantly said, “Fine. You can join,” to Rosalina’s shock.

“GUILE!?” Rosalina exclaimed, staring at the fighter as though he had lost his mind.

Wario roared with victorious laughter and yelled over at Fox and Luigi, “WAHA HA HA HA! SMELL IT LOSERS! WARIO IS APART OF THE TEAM!”

Waluigi crept over to Guile and removed his hat. He looked at the man pathetically. “What about me, wah?”

Guile smiled proudly and nodded. “You can join too.”

Waluigi leaped for joy. He returned his hat to his head and grinned over at Fox and Luigi. The two brothers were noisy with celebration. Waluigi was dancing as he did back in the Dance Dance Revolution Mario Mix years. Guile walked over to Rosalina still wearing a smile.

“Why Guile?” she asked. “They are bad men.”

Guile stopped next to Rosalina as a smirk quirked on his face. He leaned down to whisper into her ear some plan that slowly had put a smile on her face. The goddess clapped a hand over her mouth to stifle her giggles as the street fighter headed back toward the restaurant door.

“This problem’s been solved,” Guile declared. “I’m gonna have the new heroes go to Dream Land to get Mario’s belongings back.”

Guile glanced over at Luigi and his expression became stern as he reassured him, “Don’t worry. We’re gonna get your brother back.”

Guile hadn’t shared with the other heroes his plan for he didn’t wish for it to be compromised, but he figured they would have to learn to trust him and The Council. Cloud watched Guile leave and didn’t bother to question his judgment. As much as it bothered him that Wario and Waluigi were officially apart of the group, he suspected that there was a hidden agenda behind it all. Being as the situation was handled, Cloud turned toward the restaurant door.

“I guess I’ll go prepare then,” he thought aloud to himself as he left.

The Wario Brothers ceased celebrating when Rosalina approached them. She held her wand up before Wario and waved it over him as sparkles tumbled from it. Wario flinched, having expected something painful but hadn’t quite felt anything. Blinking at Rosalina, he then frowned.

“What did you do?” he growled.

Rosalina smiled innocently. “Think of it as a blessing.”

Rosalina then walked over to Luigi and rested a hand on his arm to calm him. She could sense a darkness growing inside him. She didn’t know where it came from, but she suspected it may have followed him from the Odinsphere verse.

“Everything will be okay,” she told him. “Guile has an idea.”

Her hand then became a little firm on his arm as she gazed into his eyes and reassured him once more. “No matter what anyone says. It’s not your fault. We will get Mario’s soul and hat back. We will make everything right again, okay?”

Naija, unawares that negotiations had more or less completed peacefully in the other room, saw this as an excellent opportunity to deliberate their opponent so that the team could take him out easier.

”I think I have just the things”

She had some things in her inventory that she had not dumped along with all the foor earlier, main because it was both dangerous and basically worthless in any situation but this one. She hadn't even thought about it up until now. Both taken from the ruins of Mithalas, ancient rotting meat that had been sitting pointlessly in her inventory for all this time and rainbow mushrooms, which some of it’s citizens had used as an escape while their civilization was consumed (literally) by madness. Mixing these with a basic vegetable soup she made poison and rainbow soup both of which were poured into the pot. That should be quite the trip for Wario.

Her home ingredients provided she began exploring the rest of the kitchen, marveling at all the cooking tools and different ingredients that were held within. While she tried to avoid being annoying the temptation to push buttons on the various microwaves, blenders and other devices around the kitchen was to much. As a result the kitchen was occasionally graced with small gasps of amazement and brief activation of various appliances. Due to Mama’s short stature it was all set up in such a way that Naija’s crouched posture was way less inconvenient than it usually was, which was a nice change of pace.

”This place is amazing Miss Mama. I gotta come back here when those two are gone”

After accidentally blinding herself with one, deku nuts were added to the pot, one conveniently stunning the octo when it tried to escape again.

”I don’t actually know what most of this stuff is without tasting it. Samus you recognize anything that might be particularly nasty?”

She asked the armored warrior before she hops up next to Mama. there she begins to sing softly, winding the verse into the food in the pot, stirring it with her voice and thus making it more than a sum of its parts by adding supernatural spice to the vile concoction.

As two giant tentacles flailed in the air from the pot, Samus wastes no time in pointing her cannon simply out of reflex. She aims at the giant octo, preparing to fire until Mama came and slammed the lid shut. For someone of her stature, she had quite some strength to keep a rampant octo-monster in the pot. As soon as he explained what was going on, which was basically to make the most disgusting food imaginable, the bounty hunter nods as she quickly looks around for some disgusting cooking materials.

Already Najia seems to be ahead as she takes several items out of her inventory, one of which includes some rainbow mushrooms. Talk about some intense magic shrooms. Yet as the bounty hunter looks for anything of interest, the amphibious being charms in on her status.

”I don’t actually know what most of this stuff is without tasting it. Samus you recognize anything that might be particularly nasty?”

There's a moment's pause as the bounty hunter looks at one of the bottom cupboards. Surely you can find some nasty things there, especially in the very back. As she digs her way towards the very back, she finds something quite surprising. She finds several cans of "Metroid Meat", (which shows a picture of an 16-bit Metroid creature, with the font being that of the Super Metroid Logo). Now who in the right mind would consider these disgusting gelatinous beings tasty in any way, shape or form? She also finds several other nasty food items alongside it. "Canned Radroach Eggs" (Fallout), "Monster Meat" (Don't Starve), "Spider Eyes" (Minecraft), and some other nasty food items that's not for the faint of heart. Samus could feel her stomach scrunch up into a little ball as she continues looking. At least her helmet prevents her from smelling them. She glances back at Najia.

"Uh, yeah." she says with some hesitation, as she grabs a can of Metroid Meat and Canned Radroach Eggs, "I found some stuff that looks... appetizing. Here catch. And try not to look at the labels."

She then tosses the two cans to Naija as she continues taking out the rest of the nasty ingredients from inside. No doubt that everyone outside will barf at such the atrocity that they'll create... if they are still fighting that is.

Frisk noticed the fish girl and the armored figure leave the restaurant through the door behind them. As curious as they were as to where they were going, Frisk didn't bother giving chase. At least not yet. As the discussion continued, and Wario made his comments, Frisk found themselves disliking those two brothers more and more. Fox wasn't a dumb animal, and didn't they know anything about treating someone's remains with respect?! Apparently he was also probably too stubborn to listen to any attempts at reason with him.

They ignored the current dislike for now and focused on Wario's SOUL. Their surroundings looked black and white to them and the SOULs were the only things that were colored in their eyes. They were quite surprised to see that the SOUL had taken on the form of a coin instead of a heart. But they continued to watch and saw the mini Wario march right up to it and snatch the coin from the air, giving that little chipmunk laugh. Frisk had to hold back a laugh at how funny the little chipmunk laugh was. They merely rolled their eyes at the raspberry. The SOUL in itself spoke volumes about Wario's character, and yet left them with so many questions.

"He's a dirty cheater at heart. Not really a surprise considering what I've heard from him. Huh...? Wario's immortal? I'm pretty sure that's not normal, for humans or monsters. I may have to ask somebody about that," Well, at least if they were going to be forced to fight him at some point, then they won't have to worry about going too far and ending up killing him.

"HEY!

Frisk jumped a little at the angry voice that shouted at them. As they jumped both SOULs receded back into their respective bodies. But as they looked up at Wario himself, the fat man had already broken the table and fallen over, with his hairy butt in the air. Frisk merely watched as the brothers straightened Wario out. Frisk didn't know whether to laugh, feel disgusted, or just face palm at the two of them.

Frisk turned around when they heard the door open again and they saw the tall muscle man in green again and the lady in blue who sent the stars after the thief. They watched as the lady shouted at Wario and then imprisoned him in some kind of bubble. Frisk couldn't stop an amused grin from appearing on their face as the bubble bounced around the room, before the bubble popped and sent him rolling into the wall. It was amazing that the building hadn't collapsed on everyone...yet.

Frisk's smile went away as they carefully observed the situation as Guile stopped Rosalina from doing anything else and spoke with Wario. In the end, Wario was accepted into the team and both brothers were gloating about it. They looked to Rosalina and Guile while the militaristic man (who kinda reminded them of Undyne) whispered in her ear, and a smile appeared on her face. Frisk knew that look. They had something up their sleeves for the brothers. The last time they trusted someone with their plan, things turned out well! They managed to befriend Undyne and they got to understand Alphys better. They decided to trust Rosalina and Guile when it came to their plan.

After Guile and Rosalina spoke to Luigi, Frisk trotted up to Luigi and he spoke up to Luigi and Rosalina, "I may not know you or Mr. Mario very well, but she's right. And I'll do my best to help as well," Frisk then introduced themselves "My name is Frisk Dreemurr" After glancing briefly at the dancing brothers they asked Rosalina and Luigi "Is it okay if we talk outside? I have a couple of questions,"

---

Shantae looked at Steve skeptically. She couldn't help but think to herself "Wow...I bet he would get along with Bolo very well. Ugh...." She stayed quiet as Jack answered Steve's question before she turned her attention to Taric and Jack as they asked about her abilities. Huh...She never really thought about it. She has magic, and she can use it when she can, but she could also count as a melee fighter since there was that period of time where she didn't have genie magic. She answered them, "Well, I guess I count as both a melee fighter and a magic user. I have some genie magic I can use, and I'm used to fighting bad guys if they ever attacked my home,"